Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image recording apparatus and an image recording method for performing a recording of a moving image. Also, the present invention relates to an image playback apparatus and an image playback method for performing a playback of a moving image.
Description of the Related Art
In general, a moving image recording operation by an image recording apparatus as typified by a digital video camera starts with an image capturing start instruction of an operator, and ends with an image capturing end instruction of an operator. However, there are cases in which it cannot be predicted when an important scene will occur, and where the image capturing start instruction of the operator is not in time and the operator fails to capture an important scene.
As a counter-measure to the above problem, continuously recording a moving image can be considered. In Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2010-161512, transmitting important scene start information along with a video to an external recording apparatus has been proposed. According to Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2010-161512, the external recording apparatus records all of a video as a moving image, but the video is divided based on start information, and the moving image is recorded being divided into a plurality of files. Meanwhile, in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-283988, it is recited that a zoom operation unit is used for a trimming operation unit. Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-283988 realizes an intuitive operation while assigning functions so that the same key has a different role in different operation modes.
Also, in the method that is proposed, metadata is generated for the recorded video, and based on the metadata, playback control is performed. In Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2007-174697, video in the vicinity of an in point and an out point, added based on an operation of an operator for a video that is previously recorded, is recorded. An editing list is generated by previewing a recorded video, and correcting the detailed in point/out points. Also, an editing apparatus that performs a playback operation in accordance with the editing list has been proposed. In addition, in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2009-77426, a digital broadcasting recording playback apparatus for performing playback control by generating metadata of in point and out point information based on an event message has been proposed.
There is a problem in that when a moving image is continuously recorded, a large amount of processing time is required for searching for a target scene. Here, recording, as attribute information, an in point and an out point of a scene that a photographer thinks to be important upon image capture by continuous recording to make easier later searching for the important scene can be considered. For doing this, a designating unit for inputting in point/out point information in a case in which continuous recording is performed is necessary.
Meanwhile, in many digital video cameras, configuration is taken such that the above described image capturing start and image capturing end instructions are performed by pressing a START/STOP button on a main body of the image recording apparatus. In other words, when the START/STOP button is pressed, it is recognized as the image capturing start instruction, and when the START/STOP button is pressed once again, it is recognized as the image capturing end instruction. So, in cases where the photographer intends to make the image capturing start instruction but the image recording apparatus is already in the process of recording a moving image, the recording of the moving image is stopped. Furthermore, in a case where the image recording apparatus was already stopped, recording of a moving image is started when the photographer presses the START/STOP button with the intention of performing the image capturing stop instruction. In this way, situations can occur in which start/stop operations for recording by the photographer do the opposite of what the photographer intends to do.
Also, a duration of a scene between an in point and an out point is useful information to the photographer. However, conventionally, while a duration over which the moving image being recorded is already recorded is displayed, notifying the photographer of the duration of the scene between the in point and the out point is not considered.
In addition, various units for moving images for which usability is good for the user when a moving image recorded by these kinds of imaging methods is played back can be considered. In other words, there are cases where usability is better when viewing a scene between an in point and an out point as the unit of a single moving image, and cases where it is more user-friendly when viewing the moving image from the recording start to the recording end as the unit of a single moving image. In conventional moving image playback approaches, there are cases in which there has not be sufficient consideration for these kinds of usability differences, and the user has had to perform a cumbersome operation in order to perform a playback of a moving image in units that the user desires.